The Linkielist

Linking ideas with the world

Star Wars: KOTOR Fan Remake Shutting Down After Cease And Desist From Lucasfilm

Posted on by Robin Edgar

Back in 2016, an ambitious group of fans began work on an Unreal Engine 4 “reboot” of role-playing, light-sabering classic Star Wars: Knights of the Old Republic called Apeiron. The project has made impressive progress since then, but it emitted a tragic Wilhelm scream this week when Lucasfilm lawyers zapped it out of existence. As Read more about Star Wars: KOTOR Fan Remake Shutting Down After Cease And Desist From Lucasfilm[…]

Senators to Google: Why didn’t you disclose massive Google+ vulnerability sooner? Oh, and Why can’t you Google the breach itself?

Posted on by Robin Edgar

3 GOP senators want Google to give answers over data leak that affected 500,000 users. Source: Senators to Google: Why didn’t you disclose Google+ vulnerability sooner? It’s only three senators and chances are you haven’t heard of the massive, millions affected data breach suffered by Google, that they didn’t report. Interestingly, if you try to Read more about Senators to Google: Why didn’t you disclose massive Google+ vulnerability sooner? Oh, and Why can’t you Google the breach itself?[…]

The US military wants to teach AI some basic common sense

Posted on by Robin Edgar

Wherever artificial intelligence is deployed, you will find it has failed in some amusing way. Take the strange errors made by translation algorithms that confuse having someone for dinner with, well, having someone for dinner. But as AI is used in ever more critical situations, such as driving autonomous cars, making medical diagnoses, or drawing life-or-death Read more about The US military wants to teach AI some basic common sense[…]

Google’s AI Bots Invent New Legs to Scamper Through Obstacle Courses

Posted on by Robin Edgar

Using a technique called reinforcement learning, a researcher at Google Brain has shown that virtual robots can redesign their body parts to help them navigate challenging obstacle courses—even if the solutions they come up with are completely bizarre. Embodied cognition is the idea that an animal’s cognitive abilities are influenced and constrained by its body Read more about Google’s AI Bots Invent New Legs to Scamper Through Obstacle Courses[…]

EU hijacking: self-driving car data will be copyrighted…by the manufacturer – not to be released by drivers / engineers / researchers / mechanics

Posted on by Robin Edgar

Today, the EU held a routine vote on regulations for self-driving cars, when something decidedly out of the ordinary happened… The autonomous vehicle rules contained a clause that affirmed that “data generated by autonomous transport are automatically generated and are by nature not creative, thus making copyright protection or the right on databases inapplicable.” This Read more about EU hijacking: self-driving car data will be copyrighted…by the manufacturer – not to be released by drivers / engineers / researchers / mechanics[…]

Ancestry Sites Could Soon Expose Nearly Anyone’s Identity, Researchers Say

Posted on by Robin Edgar

Genetic testing has helped plenty of people gain insight into their ancestry, and some services even help users find their long-lost relatives. But a new study published this week in Science suggests that the information uploaded to these services can be used to figure out your identity, regardless of whether you volunteered your DNA in Read more about Ancestry Sites Could Soon Expose Nearly Anyone’s Identity, Researchers Say[…]

Stanford AI bot to negotiate sales for you with Craigslist

Posted on by Robin Edgar

Artificially intelligent bots are notoriously bad at communicating with, well, anything. Conversations with the code, whether it’s between themselves or with people, often go awry, and veer off topic. Grammar goes out the window, and sentences become nonsensical. […] Well, a group of researchers at Stanford University in the US have figured out how to, Read more about Stanford AI bot to negotiate sales for you with Craigslist[…]

Slow your roll: VMware urges admins to apply workarounds to DoS-inducing 3D render vuln

Posted on by Robin Edgar

The vuln (CVE-2018-6977) allows an attacker with normal local user privileges to trigger an infinite loop in a 3D-rendering shader. According to VMware, a “specially crafted 3D shader may loop for an infinite amount of time and lock up a VM’s virtual graphics device”. If that happens, VMware warned, the hypervisor may rely on the Read more about Slow your roll: VMware urges admins to apply workarounds to DoS-inducing 3D render vuln[…]

MindBody-owned FitMetrix exposed millions of user records — thanks to servers without passwords – AWS strikes again

Posted on by Robin Edgar

FitMetrix, a fitness technology and performance tracking company owned by gym booking giant Mindbody, has exposed millions of user records because it left several of its servers without a password. The company builds fitness tracking software for gyms and group classes — like CrossFit and SoulCycle — that displays heart rate and other fitness metric Read more about MindBody-owned FitMetrix exposed millions of user records — thanks to servers without passwords – AWS strikes again[…]

The US Democracy is turning away so many people at polling stations, they need a What to Do If You’re Turned Away at the Polls guide

Posted on by Robin Edgar

Several states have instituted stricter voter ID laws since the 2016 presidential election; more, still, are purging voter rolls in the lead up to the election, and the recent Supreme Court decision to uphold Ohio’s aggressive purging law means you can expect many more people to be removed. So, even if you’re registered to vote Read more about The US Democracy is turning away so many people at polling stations, they need a What to Do If You’re Turned Away at the Polls guide[…]

Why are Xiaomi’s fitness tracker and Apple watches detecting a heartbeat from a roll of toilet paper and bananas?

Posted on by Robin Edgar

Why is Xiaomi’s fitness tracker detecting a heartbeat from a roll of toilet paper? Weibo users are confused, but the answer isn’t as wild as it seems Does a roll of toilet paper have a heart? Obviously not. So why does Xiaomi’s fitness band display a heart rate when it’s wrapped around a roll of Read more about Why are Xiaomi’s fitness tracker and Apple watches detecting a heartbeat from a roll of toilet paper and bananas?[…]

Pentagon’s weapons systems are laughably easy to hack

Posted on by Robin Edgar

New computerized weapons systems currently under development by the US Department of Defense (DOD) can be easily hacked, according to a new report published today. The report was put together by the US Government Accountability Office (GAO), an agency that provides auditing, evaluation, and investigative services for Congress. Congress ordered the GAO report in preparation Read more about Pentagon’s weapons systems are laughably easy to hack[…]

AI lifeline to help devs craft smartmobe apps that suck a whole lot less… battery capacity

Posted on by Robin Edgar

Artificial intelligence can help developers design mobile phone apps that drain less battery, according to new research. The system, dubbed DiffProff, will be presented this week at the USENIX Symposium on Operating Systems Design and Implementation conference in California, was developed by Charlie Hu and Abhilash Jindal, who have a startup devoted to better battery Read more about AI lifeline to help devs craft smartmobe apps that suck a whole lot less… battery capacity[…]

DoNotPay App Lets You ‘Sue Anyone By Pressing a Button’. Success rate: 50%

Posted on by Robin Edgar

a new, free app promises to let you “sue anyone by pressing a button” and have an AI-powered lawyer fight your case. Do Not Pay, a free service that launched in the iOS App store today, uses IBM Watson-powered artificial intelligence to help people win up to $25,000 in small claims court. It’s the latest Read more about DoNotPay App Lets You ‘Sue Anyone By Pressing a Button’. Success rate: 50%[…]

World’s largest CCTV maker Xiongmai leaves at least 9 million cameras open to public viewing

Posted on by Robin Edgar

Yet another IoT device vendor has been found to be exposing their products to attackers with basic security lapses. This time, it’s Chinese surveillance camera maker Xiongmai who was named and shamed by researchers with SEC Consult for the poor security in the XMEye P2P Cloud service. Among the problems researchers pointed to were exposed Read more about World’s largest CCTV maker Xiongmai leaves at least 9 million cameras open to public viewing[…]

Google shutting down Google+ after exposing data of up to 500,000 users and not disclosing breach

Posted on by Robin Edgar

A vulnerability in the Google+ social network exposed the personal data of up to 500,000 people using the site between 2015 and March 2018, the search giant said Monday. Google said it found no evidence of data misuse. Still, as part of the response to the incident, Google plans to shut down the social network Read more about Google shutting down Google+ after exposing data of up to 500,000 users and not disclosing breach[…]

Nanoscale pillars as a building block for future information technology

Posted on by Robin Edgar

Researchers from Linköping University and the Royal Institute of Technology in Sweden have proposed a new device concept that can efficiently transfer the information carried by electron spin to light at room temperature—a stepping stone toward future information technology. They present their approach in an article in Nature Communications. Light and electron charge are the Read more about Nanoscale pillars as a building block for future information technology[…]

California bans default passwords on any internet-connected device

Posted on by Robin Edgar

In less than two years, anything that can connect to the internet will come with a unique password — that is, if it’s produced or sold in California. The “Information Privacy: Connected Devices” bill that comes into effect on January 1, 2020, effectively bans pre-installed and hard-coded default passwords. It only took the authorities about Read more about California bans default passwords on any internet-connected device[…]

iPhone Shortcut Automatically Records Police, turns off face and fingerprint ID

Posted on by Robin Edgar

According to Mic, Reddit user Robert Peterson created a trick using the virtual assistant, Siri, that lowers the phone’s brightness, turns on Do Not Disturb, texts the iPhone owner’s location to an emergency contact and lets them know you have been pulled over by police. The shortcut will also automatically start recording video and, when Read more about iPhone Shortcut Automatically Records Police, turns off face and fingerprint ID[…]

Sans Forgetica font May Help You Remember What You Read

Posted on by Robin Edgar

We’re all used to skimming past the boring parts of a reading assignment or a web article. But when researchers from RMIT University in Australia printed information in a weird, hard-to-read font, they found that people were more likely to remember what they read. There’s a sweet spot, their experiments suggest: If the font is Read more about Sans Forgetica font May Help You Remember What You Read[…]

Researchers Created ‘Quantum Artificial Life’ For the First Time

Posted on by Robin Edgar

For the first time, an international team of researchers has used a quantum computer to create artificial life—a simulation of living organisms that scientists can use to understand life at the level of whole populations all the way down to cellular interactions. With the quantum computer, individual living organisms represented at a microscopic level with Read more about Researchers Created ‘Quantum Artificial Life’ For the First Time[…]

Japan’s silent submarines extend range with li-ion batteries

Posted on by Robin Edgar

The Oryu is the eleventh submarine based on the Soryu’s design. Soryu-class vessels, which started being built in 2005, are among the largest diesel-electric submarines in the world. But the Oryu is a vastly updated version of the Soryu, the biggest change being the replacement of lead-acid batteries with lithium-ion ones. Mitsubishi Heavy tapped GS Yuasa Read more about Japan’s silent submarines extend range with li-ion batteries[…]

Instagram explores sharing your precise location history with Facebook even when not using the app

Posted on by Robin Edgar

Instagram is currently testing a feature that would allow it to share your location data with Facebook, even when you’re not using the app, reports app researcher Jane Manchun Wong (via TechCrunch). The option, which Wong notes is being tested as a setting you have to opt-in to, allows Facebook products to “build and use Read more about Instagram explores sharing your precise location history with Facebook even when not using the app[…]

Lawyers for Vizio data grabbing Smart TV owners propose final deal, around $20 per person. Lawyers themselves get $5.6 million.

Posted on by Robin Edgar

Lawyers representing Vizio TV owners have asked a federal judge in Orange County, California to sign off on a proposed class-action settlement with the company for $17 million, for an affected class of 16 million people, who must opt-in to get any money. Vizio also agrees to delete all data that it collected. Notice of Read more about Lawyers for Vizio data grabbing Smart TV owners propose final deal, around $20 per person. Lawyers themselves get $5.6 million.[…]